It's that time of year again: we're making our lists and checking it twice.

I'll start off by saying 2005 was a fairly bad year for hip hop and most electronic music. This fact is outweighed, however, by this year's batch of albums that contain a level of genre-bending innovation and creativity that further render mainstream radio playlists irrelevant. Thanks to Sirius Satellite Radio and some excellent audioblogs, I've pursued a lot of artists/songs previously unknown to me, many of whom are on independent labels. I know it's been an interesting year when Weezer, The Chemical Brothers, Public Enemy, Daft Punk, Four Tet, Madonna, and Franz Ferdinand release new albums and none of them crack my top 20.

Without further delay, here's my Top 20 ...

1. Plans - Death Cab for Cutie * Dude, I know this ain't cool ... especially since this is Death Cab's first major label record deal, after several excellent albums on an indie label. I can hear the hipsters screaming "sell-outs!" with every ounce of their vegan marijuana breath. But I'd be fronting if I pretended that any other CD had a greater impact or more frequent rotations on my playlist. Plus, this isn't exactly some Neptunes-produced TRL-friendly album; my favorite song, "What Sarah Said," is a ballad about watching someone die in the hospital. With the solo acoustic "I Will Follow You Into The Dark," Ben Gibbard proves that he doesn't need his band or Postal Service producer Jimmy Tamborello to mesmerize an audience. Beautiful, every track.

2. Multiply - Jamie Lidell * As embarassed as I may be a few years from now when Jamie Lidell turns out to be the Jamiroquai of 2005, I'm not hesitant, at the moment, to declare Multiply one of my favorite funk/soul albums. Lidell seems to channel Otis Redding, D'Angelo, James Brown, and every artist on the Stax label, underscored with the occasional electronic blips and ProTools beat-chopping that reminds the listener that the record was not actually made in 1967. Unfortunately, the best Lidell song of 2005 is the Gonzalez-remix of "Multiply," which ain't on the album.

3. Arular - M.I.A. * Is there anything left to say about Sri Lankan refugee Maya Arulpragasam (a.k.a. Missing In Action) that hasn't already been ejaculated from fawning critics worldwide who diagnosed her with hip-atitis? I do have this to say, however: what kind of musical industry nominates Sugarland, Keane, Ciara, and Fall Out Boy for the "Best New Artist" Grammy and leaves out M.I.A.? Interestingly, a gaggle of folks seem to have turned on her now that she's everyone else's favorite and after she lent "Galang" to a Honda commercial. But "Bucky Done Gone" and "10 $" still sound like the freshest thing this side of the millennium.